Confessions of a Teenage Werewolf
by Fresh Water Plimpy
Summary: Remus is being dragged down by the full moon once more and this time his friends have had enough with the lies. They are determined to find out his secret and when they do, how do they react? Constructive criticism welcome.


**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter**

**A/N: Whatever is Remus' little secret?**

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Confessions of a Teenage Werewolf

James lounged in his favourite armchair by the fire in the Gryffindor common room, only half listening to the conversation going on between his friends.

"I still say we should just push him in the Lake. No one would know. Evans might though…"

"Sirius, we are not pushing Snape in the Lake!" moaned Remus; Peter looked terrified at the thought of it, let alone actually doing it.

"James, back me up here," said Sirius and Remus at the same time, the corners of their mouths twitching in amusement.

James just grunted, lost in thought, staring at Lily Evans who was sat at a desk behind a pile of books. "Pack it in staring at Evans. You know she'll only hex you."

Another grunt. "Guys, I - I have to go away for a few days-" James' head snapped back to his friends face. "My mother is ill and dad's got to work, so there's no one else to help her out. I'm leaving in the morning."

Remus looked at the others with wide eyes, gulping, hoping they wouldn't ask questions. James' first instinct was to wish him luck and ask him to pass on his regards to Remus' mother, but something stopped him. She had been ill one too many times over the past year.

The next morning, whilst James, Sirius and Peter trudged off to their first lesson of the day (Charms) Remus could be seen entering Professor McGonagall's office empty-handed. _Empty-handed?_ Surely he would need a bag of clothes, at the very least? But no, he carried nothing but a pained expression that twisted his features. James slowed his pace as he added everything up in his head. The monthly visits home, the pained expressions, the increased anger a few days before he left, the scars that trailed across his body…

"Sirius! I've just had an epiphany!"

Sirius turned back to look at him as they entered the Charms classroom, but before he could speak, Peter asked, "What's an epiphatree?" James laughed whilst Sirius rolled his eyes, "An _epiphany_, Peter, is a great realisation of sudden truth. Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I never knew you could speak such wise words," laughed James.

"My mother had one when she found out I was sorted into Gryffindor. Finally realised I wasn't worth the effort. She doesn't half have a set of lungs on her, I can tell you! Anyway, what's your epiphany?"

"I know why Remus leaves."

"He's gone home because his mother's ill, hasn't he?" asked Peter.

"Yeah, but what about all those other times?" said James.

The others thought for a moment before Sirius said, "His uncle got married once."

"Then there was that time the kitchen needed decorating," offered Peter.

The rest of the class began to file in as they continued to discuss their friend, so they dropped their voices to a whisper, lest anyone should hear. "His neighbour died…Twice," said Sirius.

"Oh, and don't forget that time his goldfish had a heart attack!" remembered Peter.

"Alright, guys. I get it. What I'm saying is that I don't think anything is actually wrong with his mum. I saw her on the Platform and she looked healthy as a hippogriff. So maybe-"

But Sirius interrupted him. "It could just be sudden, like dragon pox or something. I heard Lucius Malfoy's father has it. He's likely to die, it's dangerous when you're an adult."

"Just hear me out, will you? We've heard all his shoddy excuses every single month. He has all those scars; remember when we first saw them? He said they were nothing and we all thought maybe his parents, you know… But I've seen him with his family and they love him big time."

"So what are you getting at?" asked Peter confusedly.

"What I'm trying to say, Peter, is that Remus is a -"

"Alright, class! Settle down, settle down. You three, in your seats please." Tiny Professor Flitwick had just entered the classroom, interrupting whatever James had been about to say.

When the class was at an end James grabbed the other two and dragged them away from their next class, saying, "We need to get to the dormitory now. Binns will never realise we're gone. Here, under this."

James whipped out the Invisibility Cloak and draped it over Sirius and himself, whilst Peter hung back. He didn't want to get caught skipping lessons, but he also didn't want to lose his friends. Making a snap decision he stepped under the Cloak and went with them to their dormitory.

When they finally reached their destination, James stowed the Cloak back into his bag and slumped on his bed. Sirius sat gracefully on the edge of his own bed, looking across at James, whilst Peter leant against the post at the foot of his own bed.

"What were you saying before?" asked Sirius. James sat up slowly, then looked down at his hands and whispered, "I think Remus is a werewolf." Whatever reaction he had expected, it wasn't this. Sirius was howling with laughter, slapping his hand on his knee. Peter clutched to his four-poster for support, also laughing, though not quite as hysterically.

"You think…Remus…_our_ Remus, is a - a werewolf?" Sirius struggled to speak through his laughter as Peter chuckled, "It is pretty unlikely."

"Oi! Stop laughing at me! Just think about it for a moment. There's no other explanation," he jumped off his bed and stood in front of his calendar, checking the dates. It was full moon tomorrow. He pointed his finger at it and turned his head to look at the others. "See? Full moon is tomorrow night. Think back to exactly four weeks ago. He left because his _gold fish_ had a _heart attack_? He's never mentioned a fish before. Never mentioned any uncles until there was one getting married! And their kitchen isn't that big, so why would he need to go home to help?"

Peter still chuckled to himself, "I think he's finally lost it, Sirius. Sirius?"

Sirius was still sat on his bed, his face full of shock and dawning realisation. "But…we…he…_how_? How can he be a werewolf? And how the hell did you figure it out?" He frowned at James as though he had been insulted.

Putting on a posh accent, James leapt up onto his bed and said, whilst gesturing with his hands, "My dear friends, Sirius and Peter, I took it upon myself to perform an artful study of dear Remus! I myself believed his foolish, half-hearted excuses, too busy wreaking havoc to see them for what they truly were. _Lies_. This year, however, we are only two months into our second year and he has yet again given a reason for him to leave. His excuse last month was that his gold fish died."

He looked down at his friends before continuing, "I think we can all agree that there was no fish, ever. I was under the impression that his idea of a pet was a rock; even then that seemed to prove too much for him. This time, his mother is ill. I admit, there may actually be a chance that she really is ill, but after sharing a dormitory and friendship with him for a year, I can conclude that Remus John Lupin is, in fact, a werewolf."

He dropped his arms and accent and flopped back on the bed. "What do you reckon? Pretty good, eh?"

"Well, one thing is for certain: you're never going to be an actor!" James lobbed his shoe at his best friend and said, "Try to be serious, will you?"

"Oh, I am," he grinned cockily before continuing. "You have a point. There's only one way to find out. We'll have to ambush him when he gets back."

Peter whimpered at the thought of confronting a werewolf. "Don't worry, we won't let him hurt you," assured Sirius sarcastically.

"But - he's a - a -"

"We know," said James. "Or we will for certain in a few days. He'll need time to rest and whatever. He's never hurt you before, has he? Exactly, so what makes you think he'll start now? He's our friend Peter and we don't turn our backs on our friends in their hour of need."

Peter flushed before nodding.

The next evening, as the light was beginning to fade, James looked out of his dormitory window and saw something that made him look again.

"Psst! You two, I know where they take Remus! Come and look at this," he waved them over to the window and they all pushed their noses up against the glass, all staring into the shadow of the Whomping Willow.

"They hide him in a tree?" asked Peter.

"No, you idiot. There must be a tunnel or something. I wonder where it goes…" They watched as Madam Pomfrey levitated a stick and used it to prod at the base of the trunk, which immediately made all the branches freeze. Remus slid out of sight, closely followed by the matron who seemed to be carrying a pile of blankets.

"Well, I suppose he's gone for the night. We'll have to talk to him when he 'comes back' in a couple of days. He's going to need loads of rest," James sighed before adding, "Poor guy."

Remus ached in every cell of his being as he walked the familiar path to Gryffindor tower. He was not looking forward to the bombardment of questions he was sure to get from his friends about his apparently sick mother. His was still tired, even after three days rest and so he was looking forward to his big comfy bed that evening.

He got to the portrait hole, gave the password, and went straight up to his dormitory. He put a hand against the door, and was about to push it open, when he heard the conversation coming from inside.

"…I think we should just come straight out with it. I mean, if he is, you know…"

"He ought to be back soon. I saw him coming out of the tree earlier so we can ask him as soon as he comes through that door."

Remus squeezed his eyes shut, praying that he was dreaming and that his friends had not guessed what he was.

"Are you really sure, James? That Remus is a werewolf?" asked Peter timidly.

_Great, he's scared of me_, thought Remus. He couldn't take anymore. He pushed the door open slowly, eyes almost popping out of his skull, his face an ashen grey, his breath hitching in his throat. The others, who had been huddled around Peter's bed, looked up, surprised they had been caught.

"Remus!" exclaimed Sirius. "How's your mother?"

"You can drop the pretences now. How did you … When did you… _Who told you_?" It sounded as though he was being strangled.

"Remus, old pal, it was painfully obvious when you look at all the evidence. I'm disappointed I didn't realise sooner! Why didn't you tell us?" asked James.

"Because I wasn't supposed to tell anyone. I'd be kicked out if people knew. We weren't sure if I would be allowed to come, but then Dumbledore became Headmaster and he said yes, so long as I took precautions. The tree was planted because of me." He cleared his throat before adding, "I'll just pack my stuff now. You probably don't want to share a room with me anymore -"

"What are you talking about?" James interrupted. "We don't care that you're a werewolf. It wasn't your fault, I'm sure. It's just a little problem of yours. Yeah, that's what it is! A furry little problem!" He laughed at his own joke, whilst Sirius playfully kicked him.

"Tell you what," promised Sirius, "We've already decided how we're going to help you. To make it as easy as possible for you."

"How?"

"We did some research about werewolves. Did you know that you're less sensitive to animals than humans?" Remus nodded, wondering where this was going. "We're going to become Animagi. Turn into animals at will, like McGonagall."

"But," Remus pointed out, "that could take years. And it's illegal if you don't register. Not to mention dangerous."

"So? You, me and Sirius are the three most intelligent boys in our year. We can help Peter here. We're offering to help you, still want to be your friends, and you're worried about the law?" scoffed James.

"Really? You still want to be my friends?" Remus' face split into a wide grin. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all, if he had his best friends beside him the whole way. "Brilliant!"

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**A/N: ****The 'epiphatree' joke comes from The Simpsons Movie and I just couldn't resist the 'Sirius' joke. A review would make my day :)**


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